Readers Skeptical ”historic, bipartisan pension reforms signed into law in June 2011″
Those …”historic, bipartisan pension reforms signed into law in June 2011″ … are but a VERY minor down-payment on REAL MATERIAL needed financial reforms at least 10 times as great in savings. Between the ALREADY ACCRUED and UNDERFUNDED pension and retiree healthcare benefit promises for PAST service, NJ is in the hole RIGHT NOW to the tune of $150 Billion (that’s Billion). That’s money we are supposed to have in hand TODAY (so it can go grow to pay out much larger benefit promises in the future). Saving a few hundred Million is tenth-ths of pennies for each dollar of savings needed.
The fist step is CLEARLY to STOP digging the hole deeper (every day) by allowing continued accrual for FUTURE service based on pensions formulas and benefit promises that are magnitudes too generous (multiples greater than what comparable Private Sector workers get from their employers) and unnecessary to attract and retain a qualified workforce. We must immediately hard freeze the current defined Benefit Plans granted all State and Local Public Sector workers in NJ … INCLUDING police and judges…. ZERO future growth.
They should be replaced with Defined Contribution (401K-style) Plans with a taxpayer match of 2-4% of pay which is typical of what Private Sector employers grant their employees. With “cash pay” in the Public Sector no less than that of comparable Private Sector jobs (per the US Gov’t BLS), there is NO JUSTIFICATION for providing greater pensions and better benefits …. on the Taxpayers’ dime.
The financial rape of the Taxpayers by Public Sector Unions & workers must end and the self-serving, vote-selling, contribution-soliciting politicians who allowed it to happen should be voted out of office, civilly held accountable, and criminally charged (bribery ? conspiracy?) if at all possible.
